Grandpa's rescue draws teen a hero's praise

8:14 PM,
Jan. 14, 2014

Bossier Sheriff Julian Whittington ( left) talks Tuesday about 18-year-old Cameron Mattison's heroism. The senior at Airline High School in Bossier City saved his grandfather's life after a boating accident last fall on Lake Texoma near the Texas-Oklahoma border.

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An Airline High senior's rescue of his grandfather during a boating accident last fall drew him praise Tuesday afternoon at the Bossier Courthouse in Benton.

"We're going to call you a hero," said Bossier Sheriff Julian Whittington, who was all smiles as he presented Cameron Mattison, an 18-year-old who wants to be a professional fisherman, with a memento that included a certificate marking the teen's achievement and a photo of him and his grandpa Harry.

"If it hadn't been for God and my grandson, I wouldn't be here," said the elder Mattison, who ...